Political scientist the first Rajiv Gandhi Visiting Chair at UTS

Professor Ujjwal Kumar Singh from the University of Delhi is the first Rajiv Gandhi Visiting Chair for Contemporary Indian Studies at UTS

During his four months at UTS Professor Singh will engage with undergraduate and postgraduate students and present seminars at UTS and other universities

Political scientist Professor Ujjwal Kumar Singh from the University of Delhi has joined UTS as the first Rajiv Gandhi Visiting Chair for Contemporary Indian Studies.

The chair, a collaborative venture between UTS and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, was announced last year during a visit to UTS by the former President of India Dr Abdul Kalam.

Under the agreement UTS will appoint an Indian academic as a visiting professor for one semester a year over four years, with a new candidate being selected each year.

Professor Singh specialises in the areas of laws and institutions, electoral governance, democratic and human rights and indigenous rights. He is the author of The State, Democracy and Anti-Terror Laws in India (2007, Sage, New Delhi) and Political Prisoners in India (1998, 2001, Oxford University Press).

During his four months at UTS Professor Singh will be engaged with students in the undergraduate subjects Global Politics and Ideologies, Beliefs, Visions. He will also be available for consultations with postgraduate students.

On Wednesday 9 May Professor Singh will deliver a talk at UTS, 'Cat and mouse' games: Hunger strikes and political prisonerhood. See the UTS Newsroom event listing for further details.

IOSARN Director, Associate Professor Devleena Ghosh, said Professor Singh's visit to UTS would help to increase Australia's understanding of India's economy, culture and politics and the complexities of the bilateral relationships between India and Australia in its political, economic and cultural aspects.

"His enhanced knowledge of Australia's diverse, dynamic and multicultural society will also add to the connections between the two countries," she said.